Get hardened output shafts installed at the same time.
Headers or 390 gears
Thread Starter
Burning Brakes
Joined: May 2004
Posts: 929
Likes: 45
From: Wayne NJ
Headers or 390 gears
2003 C5 Vert, 6speed, 342 rear, 335 RWHP 341 RWTQ.Right now I am leaning toward the gear swap as next mod. I now have Corsa catback,Blackwing,Dyno tune,B&M shifter.Its a pretty close toss up now.All my runs are from a roll.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 2,939
Likes: 7
From: Simpsonville SC
St. Jude Donor '09-'10
Le Mans Master
Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 5,451
Likes: 2
From: East Peoria Illinois
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Team Owner
Joined: Jul 2004
Posts: 24,652
Likes: 298
From: NJ
St. Jude Donor '05-'08
AR headers installed are $1895.00
Gears installed are $1395. If you want output shaft that is another $295.00 so the total is $1690.00
Unless you can do the work yourself you will see that this price is very competitive.
Oh if you want my mod list in order
Gears installed are $1395. If you want output shaft that is another $295.00 so the total is $1690.00
Unless you can do the work yourself you will see that this price is very competitive.
Oh if you want my mod list in order
- Cat-back
- CAI
- 4.10 Gears
- headers
- H/C
- Z06 sways
- C6 Z06 Shocks
- 3.73 gears (change over to road racing)
- Coilovers (change over to road racing)
- Wilwood Brakes (change over to road racing)
- 402 - more power
Race Director
Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 11,060
Likes: 291
From: Pasco WA
In most cases, horsepower beats gears. In SOME racing situations, the right gear ratio will keep you in your powerband better, and even eliminate a last fraction of a second gear change, on a dragstrip. But for a street driven car with a T-56, which has a very low first gear, and 3.42s, I'd go with more HP every time. Old-school think was lower gears alway equates with lower ETs, but that's not necessarily true, with traction (and other) variables. I don't have exact comparisons with my Corvette, but when I had my '01 Cobra, and changed gears to 4.10s, from the stock 3.27s, there was no improvement in my ETs. Of course it was different days, and different air, but you get my point. On the street, I was sorry I went to the taller gears, mostly because the Mustang's 5-speed only had the one OD ratio, and my gas mileage dropped noticeably, and first gear was gone in an instant. Long story short, I vote headers.
Racer
Joined: May 2006
Posts: 410
Likes: 1
From: NJ
I am currently in your same dilemma..my car has a few more bolt on mods then yours so my car probably makes a tad more power but MY decisions on this is March I get myself a nice set of long tube AR headers plus high flow cats and x-pipe. After that I am going to get myself 3:90's cause I feel that the 4:10's are going to be too much and I will probably be getting rid of them when i am making high hp number in the future. basically, get both but dont go with such an extreme gearing if you plan to do more HP mods in the future, either way your car with the headers or the gears will still be alot faster, the car with both will make you shi* your pants 
Team Owner
Joined: Mar 1999
Posts: 22,025
Likes: 192
From: At the beach in little Rhody
Gears. Determine the extent of the mod by where you plan to go with the car. If you are planning a cam and heads later down the road, when you do the gears is the time to plan accordingly on shafts and other HD components.
